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Winter finally arrives in Otero County

Some areas in Sacramento Mountains expect up to 8 inches of snow; Cloudcroft mayor hopes for more

Alamogordo Daily NewsBy Duane Barbati, Staff Writer

Posted:
01/03/2013 09:16:17 PM MST

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New Mexico Department of Transportation salt trucks started clearing U.S. Highway 82 and other roads in the Cloudcroft area at 7 a.m. Thursday. NMDOT salt trucks were getting another load of salt and cider mix at U.S. Highway 82 and State Route 244 to put on the roads Thursday afternoon.

Parts of U.S. Highway 70 were closed Thursday afternoon from Holloman Air Force Base to the NASA exit near Las Cruces due to snow-packed and icy roads.

The NWS is predicting between 1 to 2 inches of snow accumulation for Friday, according to its website.

The website also is predicting between 3 and 4 inches of accumulated snow for the Sacramento Mountains.

According to the NWS website, the winter weather advisory means that periods of snow will cause travel difficulties and motorists should be prepared for snow-covered roads and limited visibility.

The Alamogordo area started to experience light snowfall Thursday afternoon.

Alamogordo Assistant City Manager Matt McNeile said the snow is good for the city's water supply, but city crews will also be preparing for Friday's predicted snowfall.

"Snow pack is good for our springs," McNeile said. "It's not going to do any good for Bonito Lake because the lake needs to be dredged. It's certainly good for our water and help us out."

He said people also have fun when it snows.

"People like to get out and recreate in it," McNeile said. "We do have procedures in place for snow and ice. We try to keep our overpasses de-iced and cleared. All of our public buildings will have crews out Friday morning to get those ready for opening.

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We'll shovel the snow, if necessary, clear parking lots and put salt down on sidewalks."

New Mexico Department of Transportation salt and plow trucks started clearing U.S. Highway 82 just east of Cloudcroft at 7 a.m. Thursday.

The roadways near Cloudcroft were becoming icy and accumulated with snow by Thursday afternoon and early evening.

Cloudcroft Mayor Dave Venable said he believes his town needs much more snow.

"We're hoping to get about 7 to 10 inches of snow or more for a number of reasons, obviously for water and the ski area," Venable said. "The ski area is trying their darndest to get open, but Mother Nature is not cooperating as much as we would like to have enough snow to open up. The more the merrier."

He said he believes Cloudcroft really needs the snow pack for water.

"The village needs it to replenish the wells and springs," Venable said. "Right now, we're just hanging on to get back to somewhat normal for the summer. The more snow pack, the better. The more snow that we have up here, the more people come up and play. They get out in it and roll around in it, then come into town, warm up and come in to eat."

He said the ice skating rink has been open for the last three weeks.

"They've been doing really well," Venable said. "It's been cold enough for them to be open and maintain it. They were open through the holidays with a lot of people enjoying the ice and having a good time. We've had maybe an inch of snow since just before Christmas."